Knit contour unit for a knitting machine

ABSTRACT

A knit contour unit for a knitting machine in which an input member, drivable by reciprocation of the carriage of the machine, is operatively connected to pattern advancing means through engagement with a drive plate which imparts movement to an input member. The extent of the incremental movement transmitted by the output member to the pattern advancing means is controlled by the selective positioning of the output member on the drive plate. A dial selector is rotatably and depressably mounted in the frame of the unit and automatically effectuates disengagement of the drive plate from the output member when repositioning of the output member is to be effected.

ilnited States Patent [191 Rogers et al.

[ KNIT CONTOUR UNIT FOR A KNITTING MACHINE [75] Inventors: HowardD.-Rogers, Westfield;

Henry Schaeflern, Pittstown, both of NJ.

[73] Assignee: The Singer Company, New York,

[22] Filed: Nov. 9, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 414,557

[52] US. Cl. 66/1-R, 66/154 R, 66/60 [51] Int. Cl. D04b 35/00, D04b37/00 [58] Field of Search 66/1, 60, 64, 76, 154

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,206,518 7/1940Strzalkowski 66/1 3,099,192 7/1963 Mishcon 66/1 3,293,760 12/1966 Weller66/1 3,690,123 9/1972 Delair et al. 66/1 3,790,761 2/1974 Crabtree 66/1FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS France 66/1 [111 3,834,186 [451 Sept.10, 1974 44-15,584 1969 Japan 66/1 Primary ExaminerRonald FeldbaumAttorney, Agent, or Firm-Marshall J. Breen; Chester A. Williams, Jr.;Joel Halpern ABSTRACT A knit contour unit for a knitting machine inwhich an input member, drivable by reciprocation of the carthe driveplate from the output member when repositioning of the output member isto be efi'ected.

8 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures PATENTEDSEPWIW 3834.186

SHEEI 1 0f 2 l llillllllllllllllllllllll 4 6| 6057 56 38 35 4| Fig?)PATENTEDSEPI 01914 SHEEI 2 0F 2 Fig. 7

Fig. 6

KNIT GONTOUR UNIT FOR A KNITTING MACHINE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThis invention relates to knit contour units for knitting machines,particularly home knitting machines. As is well known, in knitting agarment having a contoured configuration such as the body of a sweateror jumper when the knitting has proceeded, for example, to the area ofthe armhole it is necessary to vary the number of stitches per row inorder to produce the desired contour. This requires that the operatorcount the number of rows of stitching already completed and then eitherestimate the number of increased or decreased stitches per row needed oractually measure the intended wearer to determine such variation. Theintroduction of patterns from which the variation in the number ofstitches per row may be readily obtained was an advance in the art;however, it was nevertheless necessary to count the rows of completedstitches on the garment to establish the variation row by row. In recentyears there have been made available to knitting machine operatorsvarious types of attachments to assist in keeping track of the point ofknitting at all times and to enable the operator to keep accurate countof the number of rows knitted and for retention of a graph of the stitchpattern in an easily observed-position. US. Pat. No. 2,722,814 grantedNov. 8, 1955 to Anthony P. Ferriazzo may be referred to for details ofsuch an attachment. I

More recently, devices generally designated as knit contour units orstitch and row counters have been made available whereby a pattern,representative on a reduced scale of the actual garment to be knitted,is advanced incrementally on a row by row basis by pattern advancingmeans such as a roller. The pattern is aligned with a stitch scale suchthatas the carriage of the knitting machine is reciprocated to produce arow of stitches, a ratio regulating mechanism effectuates actuation ofthe pattern advancing means in response to such reciprocation of thecarriage so that the operator may concurrently and easily note visually,without having to count the rows of stitches already completed, therequired stitch variation row by row as the knitting proceeds. JapanesePat. No. 587,607 granted to Silver Seiko discloses a unit of thischaracter, Broadly, units of this type include a rotatable output memberwhich is operatively connectable to the pattern advancing mechanism andto an input member drivable by means actuable through reciprocation ofthe carriage. A ratio regulating mechanism enables the operator to varythe ratio of the movement between the input and output members dependingupon the particular stitch scale employed. However, one deficiency ofsuch units has been the scoring or frictional wear sustained byintermediate elements in the drive train between the input member andthe pattern advancing means. Such scoring or undesirable wear frequentlynecessitates repair or replacement of the ratio regulating mechanism orof elements thereof. Prior art structures were also somewhat susceptibleto being inadvertently jolted out of a selected position to therebyintroduce inaccuracies in ratio control.

SUMMARY or THE INVENTION In view of the foregoing it is one object ofthe present 2 invention to provide a knit contour unit in whichoperation of the selector dial for establishing the desired ratiocontrol automatically disengages the output element of the ratio controlmechanism to thereby reduce wear on elements of such mechanismandincrease service life thereof.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a knit contour unitin which certain elements of the ratio selecting train are in permanentengagement whereby accurate and positive ratio selection is assured.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a knit contourunit in which the pattern advancing means is actuated by eachreciprocation of the carriage so as to provide an accurate and currentstitch and row count.

'Other objects and advantages of the invention will become readilyapparent upon a reading of the detailed description of the invention.

According to the present invention there is provided a knit contour unitfor a knitting machine, comprising a frame, pattern carrying meansmovably mounted in said frame drivable in response to and inpredetermined relationship relative to the movement of the carriage ofsaid machine, said pattern carrying means being adapted to advance apattern in a row to row direction, a drive plate operably connectable tosaid pattern carrying means and carried by a shaft mounted rotatably insaid frame, scale means for indicating the number of stitches per row ofpattern advance, and ratio regulating-means for establishing saidpredetermined relationship between movement of said carriage andmovement of said pattern carrying means, said ratio regulating meansincluding a dial member rotatablymounted in said frame and depressableaxially with respect to said frame, an input member drivable in responseto'movement of said carriage and adapted to effect rotation of saiddrive plate, and an output member rotatable by said drive plate andoperatively connected to said pattern carrying means to drive same, saidoutput member being positionable at selected radial locations on saiddrive plate to establish the desired ratio between the rotation of saidinput and output members, said dial member carrying means thereoncooperable with racking means connected 'to said output member wherebydepression of said dial member serves to disengage the drive plate fromsaid output member and rotation of said dial member and means carriedthereon displaces said racking means and locates said output member at aselected radial location on said drive plate to thereby establish thedesired ratio of rotation between said input and output members.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In order that the invention may bemore readily comprehended it will now be described, by way of example,with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a home knitting machine with a knitcontour unit according to the invention attached thereto;

FIG. 2is an elevational front view of the knit contour unit shown in FIG. 1 with'the cover broken away;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational sectional view of the ratio controlmechanism of the invention taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 2;

FIG.I6 is a bottom plan view of the bell crank and actuating leverarrangement for indexed rotation of the ratchet input wheelpartly insection and taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 2; and I FIG. 7 is across-sectional view of the roller and tape reel assemblies taken alongline 77 of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to FIG. 1 of thedrawings there is shown a home knitting machine 10 having aneedle bedll'and a carriage 12 adapted to be reciprocated laterally along theneedle bed. As is well known,the carriage may be manipulated manually orit may be driven by an electric motor (not shown). Secured to theknitting machine at a convenient location is the knit contour unit 13.Such unit should be so positioned with respect to the carriage of themachine that reciprocation of the carriage along the bed in eitherdirection results in the engagement of the carriage, or an elementcarried thereby, with an element of the knit contour unit such asactuating lever 14. As will be described hereinafter in greater detail,each such engagement initiates movement of a series or train of elementswithin the knit contour unit which culminates in the incremental advanceof a pattern carrying or advancing means such as roller 15.

The knit contour unit comprises a console or frame 16 preferably moldedfrom an impact resistant plastic material. The housing is provided witha hinged lid or cover 17 to provide access to the roller adjusting knoband other operational elements of the unit. The cover is shown inphantom in FIG. 7 pivoted to a partly open position. Pivotal movement ofthe lid thus exposes the roller assembly for insertion of a pattern,generally made of paper; The pattern is representative of the garment tobe produced by the knitting machine. Such a pattern 18 is shown inphantom. Positionedeither directly above or below the point at which thepattern is introduced there is shown a scale 19 which is preferably oneof a plurality-of scales carried on a continuous tape 20. Reference toFIGS. 2 and 7 of the drawings will reveal that the tape is mounted on apair of spools or reels 21 which are rotatably supported within theconsole. To permit registration of any selected scale of the tape withthe particular pattern used a pair of reel or scale adjusting knobs 22are provided. A preferred construction, as may be seen most clearly fromFIG. 7, involves the provision of a pair of miter gears 24, 25 carriedrespectively bythe reel shaft 26 and by a stub 1 shaft 27 at the otherend of which one of knobs 22 is affixed. The knobs are located withinthe console so that access is gained thereto by lifting of cover 17.

The knit contour unit is shownas having a dial selector 28 mountedrotatably on the housing so as to be an- .gularly adjustable throughouta predetermined range of rotation. As may be observed. dial selector 28comprises a handle 29 carried at the upper end of a stem 4 of the dialselector in the selected position the console is given a first annulardisc-shaped member 33 having a circumferentially downwardly facingtoothed or serrated edge surface 34. This member is situated so as to beconcentrically arranged about the stem of the dial selector. A secondlike annular member 35 is affixed to the stem 30 and is normally urgedhim meshed relationship with member 33 under the influence of spring 36to be hereinafter described. I

The dial selector is urged upwardly under the influence of spring 36 soas to effectuate meshing of the said serrated surfaces on members 33,35. Depression of the selector against the influence of spring 36 causesa disengagement of discs 33, 35 and thus enables the operator to rotatethe dial to a different angular position. As

'will be described hereinafter, the rotation of the dial to a newposition serves to establish a different rate of incremental advance forthe roller 15.

Reference is made to FIGS. 2 and 3 from which it will be seen that adrive plate or a disc 37 is mounted atop a vertical shaft 38 which isrotatably journaled in the frame of the unit as will be hereinafterdescribed. The

. means, described below, in order to retain the drive plate in therotationally indexed position. The shaft 38 is so mounted within theframe that itis also capable of limited axial movement. Compressionspring 36 is positioned about shaft 38 constrained between the lowersurface of the drive plate and the bottom plate 41 of the frame. Adisengaging lever 42 is positioned within the console and is providedwith a flange portion 43 having an aperture therethrough for receptionof a pin or shaft member 44 which-serves to support the lever in theframe and act as a fulcrum therefor. The lever is pivotably mounted onshaft 44 such that the free end thereof extends over the drive platepreferably the midpoint thereof. The lower surface of the lever isprovided with a pin member or protuberance 45 substantially coaxial withshaft 38 whichis normally in engagement with the central portion of thedrive plate. Spring 36 urges the drive plate into engagement with theprotuberance on thelever 42 so as to urge the lever upwardly about itsfulcrum and thereby transmit a like biasing force to the dial selectorassembly through pinion 31 which is provided with an end sectionengageable with the lever.

An input member 46, in the form of a ratchet wheel,

is positioned immediately below the drive plate and is concentricallyarranged with respect thereto and rotatable therewith on shaft 38. Apresently preferred embodiment of the invention is to provide the driveplate and ratchet wheel as an integral unit mounted onshaft 38.

Journaledat both ends within the frame is output shaft 47. The shaft isformed with a non-circular crosssection, preferably with a squareconfiguration. Carried slidably on the output shaft is a sleeve member48. The sleeve member comprises an elongated portion 49 which is formedas a circular rack on its exterior surface and an output wheel or discportion 50 which is dimensioned to ride in engagement with the uppersurface of drive plate 37. The output disc portionis provided with abore having-the configuration of shaft 47 sothat sleeve member 48is notonly capable of axial movement along the shaft but is capable ofrotational movement with the shaft regardless of its axial positionthereon. The circular rack portion 'of the sleeve member isformed with abore of sufficient diameter to avoid binding with the shaft during axialmovement of the sleeve therealong. Thus, the bore of the circular racksegment of sleeve 48 is given an internal diameter larger than thewidest dimension of the shaft. Further, it has been found desirable toform the circular rack and output disc separately and to'press-fit thedisc onto a reduced end portion of the rack.

One end of output shaft 47jis provided with a pinion 51 which ispositioned thereon so as to be cooperable with a pinion 52 on rollershaft 53 to be later described.

As may be observed most clearly from FIG. 3, spring 36 serves to biasdrive plate 37in an upwardly direction into engagement with output disc50. Thus, in normal operation rotation of the ratchet wheel 46 effectsrotation of the drive plate 37 and, because of the facing of frictionalmaterial thereon, of output disc 50. This results in rotation of theoutput shaft 47 and of pinion 51 carried at the end thereof.

As may be seen from FIG. 2,- output shaft 47 is journaled at one endthereof in wall 54 formed within the console or frame of the knitcontour unit. Output shaft 47 is coupled through pinions 51 and 52 tothe pattern advancing roller to transmit rotational drive thereto.Pinion 52 is carried by the roller shaft adjacent the end thereof at alocation such that it is in permanent engagement with pinion 51 on theoutput shaft. Generally, the pinion 52 is larger than pinion 51 so as toeffeet a step-down in rotational speed. The exact ratio between thepinions is not critical since it depends upon various factors such asspace limitations for the drive plate and ratchet wheel and the desiredrate of incremental advance for roller 15. Knob 55 is secured to rollershaft 53 at a convenient location so as to afford manual adjustment ofroller 15. As with reel adjusted knobs 22, it is necessary to lift thecover 17 to obtain access thereto for manual manipulation.

The circular rack segment of sleeve member 48and the pinion 31 are sodimensioned and located that these two members are always in engagement;the teeth of the pinion being in meshed relationship with the grooves ofthe circular rack. Thus, it will be seen that depression of the dialselector 28 against the bias of spring 36 effects a separation ofdisc-like members 33, 35, the lower end of stem 30 engaging the uppersurface of disengaging lever 42 so as to cause the lever to pivot aboutits fulcrum or shaft 44. As the lever pivots downwardly, pin member orprotuberance 45 is caused to press against the drive plate and opposethe force of spring 36 so as to disengage the drive plate from outputwheel 50. Rotation of the dial selector 28 and of pinion 31 carriedthereby effectuates axial movement of the sleeve member 48 along outputshaft 47 due to the coaction between the pinion and circular rack. Asthe sleeve member moves axially along output shaft 47 it carries theoutput wheel therewith to a new radial location with respect to driveplate 37. Once the dial selector has been positioned in the desiredangular setting and it is released, it is urged back into lockedrelationship by virtue of the force of spring 36 and the cooperatingserrated surfaces on the disc members 33, 35. It will be appreciatedthat by varying the radial position of output wheel 50 the ratio ofrotational movement between ratchet wheel 46 and the output wheel may beregulated as desired in order to establish the magnitude of theincremental advance of roller 15. Further, the

gear ratio between pinions 51 and 52 determines the final speedreduction and establishes the rate of incremental advance by the roller15. The pattern 18 fed to the roller is thereby caused to advancethrough its engagement with roller 15.

As may be seen from FIGS. 2, 3 and 6 of the drawings base plate 41 ofthe knit contour unit is provided with an upstanding bushing 56, withinwhich shaft 38 is joumaled. Carried pivotably by the base of the bushingis a bell crank 57 having a pair of arms 58, 59. Arm 58 is furnishedadjacent the end thereof witha cam follower 60 in the form of a roller.The base plate of the console is also provided with a relatively shortstandard or stand-off 61 which is offset and spaced from bushing 56.Mounted pivotably on standard 61 is an actuating lever 14 which is ofsufficient length to extend beyond the face of the console such thatwhen the console is affixed to the knitting machine the protrudingportion 63 of the lever is in the path of the reciprocating car- .riageor striking means carried thereon (not shown).

The end of the lever which is carried by standard 61 is provided with acam head 64 having cam surface 65 engageable by cam follower 60 on thebell crank 57. The

lever is formed with a recessed portion that is dimensioned to acceptroller 60 in the event of an overrun by the roller of the cam surface.This affords a measure of safety against damage to the bell crank, pawlor other elements in the event the roller is caused to move beyond theextremity of cam surface 65. Spring means 66 is secured between aninternal wall of the console and a radially extending lug 67 formed onthe cam head opposite cam surface 65. Spring 66 serves to urge thereturn of the actuating lever to a neutral position when displaced byreciprocation of the carriage as described above.

Arm 59 of the bell crank extends in a substantially radial direction andis provided adjacent the end thereof with an aperture therethroughadapted to receive a pin or rivet member 68 which mounts a pawl 69. Thepin or rivet isheaded at both ends so as to retain the pawl on arm 59.Pawl 69 is conveniently formed in the configuration of a bell crank, onearm 70 of which is generally arcuate and conforms somewhat to thecurvature of the contiguous ratchet wheel. The terminal portion of arm70 is provided with a tooth element 71 adapted to engage with the teethof the ratchet vwheel to effectuate rotation of such wheel uponclockwise rotation of bell crank 57. The other arm 70' of the pawlextends in the same generally radial direction as does arm 59 of hellcrank 57 and is given a notch 72 or other suitable spring retainingmeans. A spring 73 is anchored at one end thereof to such springretaining means on the pawl arm 70' and at its other end to suitableretaining means provided on the interior of the console. Spring 73serves to bias the pawl in a direction such that tooth element 71 isurged into engagement with the adjacent tooth on the ratchet wheel. Itwill be understood, of course, that pin or rivet member 68 may berotatable within the aperture in arm 59 or the pawl may be rotatablymounted on the pin or rivet. However, the pawl must be rotatable withrespect to arm 59.

It is within the scope of the invention to substitute for theaforementioned ratchet wheel and actuating lever arrangement a motorwhich is energized selectively by virtue of the generation of electricalimpulses upon predetermined movements of the carriage. Drive plate 37maybe thus caused to rotate to transmit incremental rotation to roller15.

As is well known, mechanisms are readily available in the typewriterfield, which include a spring loaded guide tray 74, for receiving asheet material, such as a pattern 18, so that it may be pressed intoengagement with a roller for advance therewith. Similarly, suchmechanism is capable of permitting the release of the sheet materialwhenever desired. Inasmuch as the pattern locking the release mechanismmay be any such conventional and heretofore known assembly it is deemedunnecessary to encumberthe present specification with a detaileddescription in this respect.

A spring and ball assembly 75- is shown asbeing mounted on base plate41beneath the drive plate'at a location such that the ball,- oralternatively a pin member, is biased against the undersurface of thedrive plate and urged into one of the detent notches on the drive plateas the plateis rotationally indexed.

From the foregoing it will soon be seen that a knit contour unit hasbeen provided whereby ratio regulating or control means are employedwhich permit disengagement of the drive plate from the rotatable drivenoutput elements during ratio selection so as to increase the longevityof such elements. Also, the unique arrangement of a pinion and circularrack insures positive and accurate establishment of the desired ratioand minimizes the risk of accidental changes in the selected setting. I

Numerous alterations of the structure herein disclosed will suggestthemselves to those skilled in the art. However it is to be understoodthat the present disclosure relates to a preferred embodiment of theinvention which is for purposes of illustration only and not to beconstrued as a limitation of the invention. All such modifications whichdo not depart from the spirit of the invention are intended to beincluded within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus set forth the nature of the invention, what is claimedherein is: I

l. A knitcontour unit for a knitting machine, comprising a frame,pattern carrying means movably mounted in said frame drivable inresponse to and in predetermined relationship relative to the movementof the carriage of said machine, said pattern carrying means beingadapted to advance a pattern in a row to row direction, a drive plateoperably connectable to said pattern carrying means and carried by ashaft mounted rotatably in said frame, scale means for indicating thenumber of stitches per row of pattern advance, and ratio regulatingmeans for establishing said predetermined relationship between movementof said the desired ratio between the rotation of said input and outputmembers, said dial member carrying means thereon cooperable with rackingmeans connected to said output member whereby depression of said dialmember serves to disengage the drive plate from-said output member androtation of said dial member and means carried thereon displaces saidracking means and locates said output member at a selected radiallocation on said drive plate to thereby establish the desired ratio ofrotation between said input and output members.

2. A knit contour unit according to claim 1-, wherein said patterncarrying means is aroller mounted on a shaft which is in turn rotatablycarried by the frame of the machine, said outputmember being a wheelintegral with said racking means, said wheel and racking meanscomprising a sleeve mounted slidably on an output shaft and rotatabletherewith, means being carried by said roller-mounting shaft and oututshaft cooperable'to effect driving of said roller-mounting shaft by saidoutput shaft.

3. A knit contour unit according to claim 1, wherein said dial membersurmounts a stem to member end of which a pinion is secured, saidracking means being a member whereby depression of said dial membereffeccarriage and movement of said pattern carrying means,

said ratio regulating means including-a dial member rotatably mounted insaid frame and depressable axially with respect to said frame, an inputmember drivable in response to movement of said carriage and adapted toeffect rotation of said drive plate, and an output member rotatable bysaid drive plate and operatively connected to said pattern carryingmeans to drive same, said output member being positionable at selectedradial locations on said drive plate to establish tuates pivotalmovement of said lever and disengagement of said drive plate from saidoutput member.

5. A knit contour unit according to claim 4, wherein said input membercomprises a ratchet wheel secured to the said shaft which carries saiddrive plate.

6. A knit contour unit according to claim 5, wherein a bell crank ispivotably mounted on thebase plate of the frame beneath said ratchetwheel, one arm of said bell crank being actuable by a lever pivotablymounted on said base plate engageable upon reciprocation of saidcarriage by means thereon, the other arm of said bell crank beingprovided with a pawl which is adapted to index said ratchet wheel uponactuation of said one arm whereby reciprocation of said carriageeffectuates movement of said lever with consequent indexed rotation ofsaid ratchet wheel.

7. A knit contour unit according to claim 6, wherein the undersurface ofsaid drive plate is provided with a plurality of circumferentiallyspaced detent notches, a spring loaded detent assembly being mounted onsaid frame beneath said drive plate and positioned so that the spring ofsaid detent assembly urges detent means into one of said notches eachtime said ratchet wheel is rotated whereby said drive plate isrotationally indexed and maintained in the position to which it isrotated.

8. A knit contour unit according to claim 3, wherein a first annularmember having a circumferential downwardly facing serrated edge surfaceis secured to an member, said stem being provided with a second conin aselected setting, said annular members being norcentric like annularmember the serrated edge surface mally urged into meshed relationshipand separable by of which is adapted to mesh with the serrated surfacedepression of said dial member.

of said first annular member to lock the dial member

1. A knit contour unit for a knitting machine, comprising a frame,pattern carrying means movably mounted in said frame drivable inresponse to and in predetermined relationship relative to the movementof the carriage of said machine, said pattern carrying means beingadapted to advance a pattern in a row to row direction, a drive plateoperably connectable to said pattern carrying means and carried by ashaft mounted rotatably in said frame, scale means for indicating thenumber of stitches per row of pattern advance, and ratio regulatingmeans for establishing said predetermined relationship between movementof said carriage and movement of said pattern carrying means, said ratioregulating means including a dial member rotatably mounted in said frameand depressable axially with respect to said frame, an input memberdrivable in response to movement of said carriage and adapted to effectrotation of said drive plate, and an output member rotatable by saiddrive plate and operatively connected to said pattern carrying means todrive same, said output member being positionable at selected radiallocations on said drive plate to establish the desired ratio between therotation of said input and output members, said dial member carryingmeans thereon cooperable with racking means connected to said outputmember whereby depression of said dial member serves to disengage thedrive plate from said output member and rotation of said dial member andmeans carried thereon displaces said racking means and locates saidoutput member at a selected radial location on said drive plate tothereby establish the desired ratio of rotation between said input andoutput members.
 2. A knit contour unit according to claim 1, whereinsaid pattern carrying means is a roller mounted on a shaft which is inturn rotatably carried by the frame of the machine, said output memberbeing a wheel integral with said racking means, said wheel and rackingmeans comprising a sleeve mounted slidably on an output shaft androtatable therewith, means being carried by said roller-mounting shaftand outut shaft cooperable to effect driving of said roller-mountingshaft by said output shaft.
 3. A knit contour unit according to claim 1,wherein said dial member surmounts a stem to the other end of which apinion is secured, said racking means being a circular rack integralwith said output member and cooperable with said pinion, said rack andpinion being dimensioned so as to maintain engagement therebetween inall movable positions of said dial member.
 4. A knit contour unitaccording to claim 3, wherein a lever member is pivotably mounted withinthe frame thereof positioned above said drive plate, the lower surfaceof said lever being provided with a protuberance engageable with saiddrive plate at approximately the mid-point thereof, said drive platebeing spring-biased upwardly into frictional engagement with said outputmember whereby depression of said dial member effectuates pivotalmovement of said lever and disengagement of said drive plate from saidoutput member.
 5. A knit contour unit according to claim 4, wherein saidinput member comprises a ratchet wheel secured to the said shaft whichcarries said drive plate.
 6. A knit contour unit according to claim 5,wherein a bell crank is pivotably mounted on the base plate of the framebeneath said ratchet wheel, one arm of said bell crank being actuable bya lever pivotably mounted on said base plate engageable uponreciprocation of said carriage by means thereon, the other arm of saidbell crank being provided with a pawl which is adapted to index saidratchet wheel upon actuation of said one arm whereby reciprocation ofsaid carriage effectuates movement of said lever with consequent indexedrotation of said ratchet wheel.
 7. A knit contour unit according toclaim 6, wherein the undErsurface of said drive plate is provided with aplurality of circumferentially spaced detent notches, a spring loadeddetent assembly being mounted on said frame beneath said drive plate andpositioned so that the spring of said detent assembly urges detent meansinto one of said notches each time said ratchet wheel is rotated wherebysaid drive plate is rotationally indexed and maintained in the positionto which it is rotated.
 8. A knit contour unit according to claim 3,wherein a first annular member having a circumferential downwardlyfacing serrated edge surface is secured to an inner surface of saidframe, said annular member being concentrically arranged about the stemof said dial member, said stem being provided with a second concentriclike annular member the serrated edge surface of which is adapted tomesh with the serrated surface of said first annular member to lock thedial member in a selected setting, said annular members being normallyurged into meshed relationship and separable by depression of said dialmember.